Smith Fails to Secure Permit for Rental Property

Candidate’s Rental Property Listed on Airbnb but She has No Short-term Vacation Rental Permit

PALM DESERT — Anyse Smith, 38, who is seeking a seat on the City Council, has been advertising the so-called family home at 71730 Jaguar Way as vacation rental on Airbnb.com without the proper rental permit, according to Felisa Cardona, Public Information Officer for Riverside County’s Transportation and Land Management Agency.

Check out the advertisement. 

Here is a listing for the home when it was listed for sale showing the address: https://www.redfin.com/CA/Palm-Desert/71730-Jaguar-Way-92260/home/5934472

We did receive a complaint for that address at our call center and a case was opened on July 11. Owners may be served with a cease-and-desist order from Code Enforcement to end unpermitted operations and the property could be subject to $1,000 fine per day, Cardona said.

An STR certificate costs $740 with an annual renewal fee of $540.

Uken Report reached out to Smith via email on Monday and received no response. The news organization reached out again about 8 a.m. Tuesday to see if Smith received the email.

“Yes, I did see it and will get back to you today,” she wrote in a text message. I’ve been slammed at work.”

As of 4 p.m., there was still no response. It begs this question: If she does not have time to deal with legal questions now, will she have time for constituents if she is elected?

There is a short-term rental application now in process for the rental property address, Cardona said.

Smith is one of three residents who have to date entered the City Council race to represent Palm Desert’s newly created District 3, which blankets much of the city’s fast-growing northern region. The others are incumbent Gina Nestande and Stephen Nelson, a tech executive.